Against a backdrop of escalating global geopolitical fragmentation that has shaken the foundations of long-standing international cooperation, a former leader of Italy has issued a clear call for coordinated action between China and the European Union to rebuild the global multilateral system. In an exclusive interview with China Daily conducted on the sidelines of the 2026 Shanghai Forum, which brought together global policymakers and scholars from April 24 to 26, Enrico Letta — current dean of the IE School of Politics, Economics & Global Affairs at IE University and former Italian Prime Minister — warned that the world is currently grappling with what he described as a major geopolitical ‘earthquake’ that threatens to unravel decades of collaborative progress. Letta stressed that this moment of global instability demands that two of the world’s largest economic and political actors, China and the EU, set aside differences and work in lockstep to reverse the retreat from multilateral cooperation. He specifically pushed back against the growing adoption of ‘law of the jungle’ power politics that has eroded trust between nations in recent years, reaffirming his strong commitment to upholding a rules-based international order anchored in the United Nations framework. The 2026 Shanghai Forum, which served as the stage for Letta’s remarks, has long functioned as a key platform for open dialogue between Asian and global stakeholders, making it a fitting venue for a discussion focused on repairing fractured international cooperation. Letta’s intervention comes at a time when growing unilateralism, trade tensions, and geopolitical rivalries have put the post-Cold War multilateral system under unprecedented strain, with many global leaders and analysts calling for renewed collective action to address shared challenges ranging from climate change to economic inequality.